Some people think love comes from the heart and is hard to find. I think that love occurs while sitting in a boat on the lake, watching your ten dollar fishing lure getting ready to drop into the water. The simplest fling of your wrist will propel your bait the length of three football fields until it lands with a mighty splash. The most difficult thing of all is having to wait until the fish of your dreams bites your bait. Finally, you feel a giant tug and all you can think about is “how big is my fish gonna be?' No matter how often you fish, this feeling of excitement never gets old.
As my jon boat slid into the lake, the splash of cool water on my skin sent shivers down my spine.
...For some reason, things felt off today. It was not my normal fishing routine that felt off, there was something odd about the water. I could not put my finger on exactly what was wrong, but I was able to ignore my uneasy feelings and start my day. As I pulled the start rope of my outboard motor, the smell of gas drifting past my face was familiar. “There is nothing to be afraid of” I said to myself, as I watched my breath taper in the air. The sputter of the engine spit out a thick cloud of dark smoke, as I took off. The cold air flowed through my clothes, as I kept driving the boat farther and farther out into the lake. Suddenly, I felt a jolt. It felt as if I had been shot. I knew I
had to stop immediately so I could figure out exactly what was going on . As soon as the boat engine shut off, I knew that the jolt was a sign. I knew this was the place I had to fish today. I got up off the seat and pulled out my bait caster fishing rod. I flicked my wrist so hard I thought I had broken it. I slowly reeled in my bait and had caught nothing.
The sun was high in the sky, and I was beginning to feel hot. I twisted off the top of an Ozarka water bottle, but it didn’t seem to quench my thirst at all. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a Coke can appear on top of the water. I trolled my boat over and picked it up. As I leaned over the side to pull up the can, I noticed it felt heavier than a normal can would feel. I cracked open the can and felt the soda splatter on my face. I took a long sip from the can and all of a sudden a large hook snared me in my lip. An excruciating pain shot through my body as I was drug over the side of my boat. Before my head went under the water, I took a deep breath and filled my lungs with as much air as they could hold. I splashed around as hard as I could and tried my best to break free, but something very strong was pulling me deeper and deeper towards the bottom of the lake. My mind was spinning and I couldn’t believe what
was happening to me. I was actually being caught! As I opened my eyes under the water, I could see that I was being reeled in by a fish. As I splashed around in the water gasping for breathe, I began to feel more and more panicked. I knew this was probably not going to end well for me and there was little I could do.
Finally, the struggle was over. The fish pulled the sharp, silver hook out of my lip and threw me into a large, oxygen-filled box. The box was large and I was able to comfortably walk around. The fresh oxygen pumped in the box began to make me feel a little bit better. I stayed in the box for hours and during the day many more people were put in the box with me. After a while I began to notice troubling changes in my appearance. My skin got rough and scaly and my eyes got slimy. I was turning into a fish! The box opened and I swam out. I could hear faint sounds of laughter and giggles. I continued swimming, faster and faster the faint sounds were now echoed through my body. I looked up, and to my amazement, I saw a ripple on the water. Following the ripple, a slimy earthworm wiggled around. Of all my years of fishing experience, you would think I would know better, than to bite the worm.
